UNDERSTANDING HISTORY

 

At the beginning of the year I wrote a post in which I mentioned my history professor tell us that we should be careful how we judge history because it is written by men from men’s perspective. That was a few years ago but I have never forgotten it. I try to think of that even when I am reading the scriptures.

The perspective of the author is not the only thing that matters but also cultural differences of the time, manner of speaking, changes in language and what Joseph Smith claimed were ‘certain errors that had crept into the Bible through arrogant translators, careless transcribers, or designing and corrupt priests’ (Joseph Smith Teachings, p 327)

The Old Testament is particularly susceptible to incorrect text because it has been translated many times. We are fortunate to have modern day revelation that makes a lot of doctrines simpler to understand through corrections that are needed for further clarification. I am particularly grateful for the JST and I always refer to it. Sometimes it’s just a missing word that makes a whole verse make more sense.

Already this year I have come across three important examples of what I am trying to say here:

1.      Exodus 6:3: “And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.”  I ask, why would the forefathers not know His name??? Well they did….JST says: “….and unto Jacob, I am the Lord God Almighty; the Lord JEHOVAH. And was not my name known unto them?”

2.      Exodus 2:11-15: these verses say that Moses saw an Egyptian smiting a Hebrew and he ‘slew’ him. In King James English, the words ‘smote’ and ‘slew’ are both translated from Hebrew word NAKHAH, meaning to ‘beat down’. Different ancient writings and commentaries claim different things regarding this incident but the Church OT student manual quotes Elder Mark E. Petersen as saying that there must have been a good reason for Moses’ act as “most assuredly the Lord would not have called a murderer to the high office of prophet and liberator for his people Israel.” (Petersen, “Moses” p 42, Student Manual 1 p 105).  

3.      Exodus 4, 7, 9, 11: In His instructions to Moses regarding the plagues of Egypt, the Old Testament records the Lord saying He will harden the Pharaoh’s heart so he will not let the Israelites go. The JST says in every instance that Pharaoh will harden his heart which makes so much more sense. Why would the Lord try to stop His own work to the point where He had to do something so dire as extinguishing the lives of Egypt’s first born?

With the amount of study material available to us in the Church today, there really is no excuse for not understanding anything. But most important of all, make an important friend…..him who administers to all sincere seekers of truth……”and by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things” (Moroni 10:5)

And now this promise: “I the Lord am merciful and gracious unto those who fear me and delight to honour those who serve me in righteousness and in truth unto the end….and to them will I reveal all mysteries of my kingdom…for by my Spirit will I enlighten them…..(D&C 76:5-10)

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Receiving the Spirit by Danny Hahlbohm)

LESSON FROM LIBERTY JAIL #3

 

LESSON FROM LIBERTY JAIL #3:

Remain Calm, Patient, Charitable, and Forgiving-

“It has always been a wonderful testimony to me of the Prophet Joseph’s greatness and the greatness of all of our prophets, including and especially the Saviour of the world in His magnificence, that in the midst of such distress and difficulty they could remain calm and patient, charitable, and forgiving – that they could even talk that way, let alone live that way. But they could and they did.

“The Spirit has a near-impossible task to get through to a heart that is filled with hate or anger or vengeance or self-pity. Those are all antithetical to the Spirit of the Lord. On the other hand, the Spirit finds instant access to a heart striving to be charitable and forgiving, long-suffering and kind – principles of true discipleship.”

-          Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, “Lessons From Liberty Jail”, BYU Speeches, 7 Sept 208

 

You stood in the vista of my heart

Granting me the wider view.

My eyes were opened

And I understood the meaning of You.

You came to this plane of sorrow

Your footsteps to pave the trail

To make all things anew;

I follow, I follow

To one day become like You.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: The Peace of God by Yongsung Kim)

THE POWER OF THE SPIRIT

 

“Years ago as a missionary, I taught investigators that faith was a belief strong enough to cause one to act. In other words, one could define faith as “belief” plus “witness”. The Prophet Joseph Smith changed one word when translating Paul’s definition of faith found in Hebrews 11:1. The king James Version says, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

“Joseph Smith changed the word substance to assurance (see JST, Hebrews 11:1). Substance means something tangible, something that one can hold, whereas assurance refers to an inner conviction or witness that comes from the Holy Ghost. Thus, faith is belief plus action plus a spiritual witness.”

-        Elder Merrill J. Bateman, “Living a Christ-Centered Life, Ensign January 1999

Faith without the witness of the Holy Ghost that gives us an assurance of the truth, is simply just a pragmatic belief. It is the assurance of the spiritual witness that moves one to action and to keep acting. Without the inner conviction endowed by the Holy Ghost, this Church would not exist. Indeed, some of us struggle to stay in the Church because the ‘assurance’ of our faith is lacking making it impossible to adhere to the commitment and this is why:

“There is…..a difference between the gift of the Holy Ghost and the enjoyment of the gift. All saints after baptism receive the gift or right to the sanctifying power of the Spirit, but only those who are worthy and who keep the commandments actually enjoy the promised reward.” (Bruce R. McConkie, “A New Witness for the Articles of Faith” [1985] p 257).

Before His death, Jesus told the Twelve: “It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.” (John 16:7). Thus the Holy Ghost comforts, guides, purifies, testifies and makes known the things of God (see Bruce R. McConkie, Mortal Messiah 2, p 66).

The greatest promised reward we have is that of eternal life so the greatest role of the Holy Ghost is his guidance to assist us in adhering to our commitment to arrive at that destination. When we have the presence of the Holy Ghost with us, we are assured we are on the right path to that goal:

“The actual enjoyment of the gift of the Holy Ghost is a supernal gift that a man can receive in mortality. The fact of its receipt is a witness that the saints so blessed are reconciled to God and are doing the things that will assure them of eternal life in the realms ahead.” (ibid)

President Nelson has warned us that “it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost” in the days to come (“Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Lives” GC April 2018).

The prophesied calamities of the last days are frightening. Some of us will not be able to press forward to the reward of eternal life if we do not have the assurance of the Holy Ghost that we are safe and secure on the Gospel path.

ODE TO THE HOLY GHOST

The days you embrace my heart,

I can scarcely contain my tears.

The truths of heaven distil upon me

And lifts me higher than all my fears.

Take my hand, take my soul,

Take me home beyond it all. 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Outpouring of the Spirit by Danny Hahlbohm)

WHISPERS FROM HOME

 

The Prophet Joseph Smith taught that as a boy, Jesus Christ possessed superior intelligence to all mortals: “When still a boy He had all the intelligence necessary to enable Him to rule and govern the kingdom of the Jews, and could reason with the wisest and most profound doctors of law and divinity, and make their theories and practice to appear like folly compared with the wisdom He possessed.” (in History of the Church, 6:608)

And here is the key: “In his study, and in the learning process, He was guided from on high in a way that none other has ever been. Being without sin – being clean and pure and spotless – he was entitled to the constant companionship of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit that will not dwell in an unclean tabernacle, the Spirit that, conversely, always and everlastingly dwells with the righteous…..He enjoyed, at all times, the fulness of that light and guidance and power which comes by the power of the Holy Ghost to the faithful.

“He laboured and studied and struggled; he treasured up words of light and truth; he pondered the scriptures – all under the influence of the Holy Spirit of God, which came to him without measure and without limit, because He was clean and pure and upright.”

-        Bruce R. McConkie, The Mortal Messiah Book 1, 369-371

It is evident that by the age of 12 the Saviour knew who He was. When He was found in the temple teaching the doctors of the law who ‘were hearing Him and asking Him questions’ (JST Luke 2:46), He confirmed as much telling Joseph and Mary that He was about His ‘Father’s business’ (Luke 2:49). He knew, because He was taught from on high.  

Even though the Saviour had a special mission to perform, the light and knowledge He was receiving in mortality was not limited to only Him. If we will sanctify ourselves by purging ourselves of all iniquity (D&C 43:11), the Holy Ghost will be our constant companion and He will speak the truths of eternity to our hearts and our minds and we will, like Christ, know who we truly are and who we have always been. And more than that, we will understand more fully out eternal destiny.

Our awareness of our eternal selves will outweigh and outshine every doubt and negative feeling we have about ourselves. We will then come forward to be a house set on a hill. We will be an ensign to the world of the truth we bear in our hearts and the testimonies we have of the Son of God who bears the scepter of salvation, the salvation which can be ours if we but make ourselves worthy of His sacrifice.

ODE TO THE HOLY GHOST:

You are the flaming fire

That burns with sacred might;

I surrender my sins

And grant you entrance

To my heart.

 

You enlighten my path

To the knowledge I have always known

Forgotten and hidden

But whispers from home.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Outpouring of the Spirit by Danny Hahlbohm)

THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH

 

I want to testify of the sacred role of the Holy Ghost who reveals all truth to the true followers of Jesus Christ……the Revealer, the Comforter, the Spirit of God, by whom all revelation is given to the children of men through his power.

It came to me recently to understand something that has corrected my misunderstanding of the Saviour’s nature. For a while now I have been of the opinion that the Saviour is excessively merciful and tolerant towards us. This error was brought to my attention unexpectedly through the story of King David. I don’t know why, but this story flooded my mind, in the middle of the night as I slept, and taught me something I had not seen before.

To recap…..there was not a king who loved the God of Israel more than King David. When he conquered Jerusalem he brought the ark of the covenant into the city ‘with gladness’ and led a procession of Israelites playing instruments, shouting, singing and dancing ‘before the Lord with all his might’ in praise of the God he worshipped (2 Samuel 6:12-15). No king of Israel was more free from idolatrous inclinations or practices than David. Because of this, he became the standard of excellence that all subsequent kings came to be measured by.

David’s valour and his accomplishments as a king were outstanding. His reign is known in the annals of history as ‘the golden age of Israel’. His love for the God of Israel can leave you breathless through the psalms he wrote about him. And who can forget his valiant Israelite spirit as he slew Goliath exclaiming: “Is there not a cause in Israel?”

David’s fall from grace we know well. What is less observed in that moment of history is his godly sorrow and repentance. Equally impressive is his rejoicing and his hope of a lesser degree of eternal reward praising God because ‘He will not leave his soul in hell’ (Acts 2:25-26). This hope of the resurrection of the unjust is known as ‘the sure mercies of David’ (see Bruce R. McConkie, The Promised Messiah, p 272).

I can think of no one who would have wept more when this tragedy unfolded than the Saviour himself. To lose someone with so much promise and faithfulness would have been agonizing to Him. If there was anyone the Saviour could have been excessively merciful to, it would have been David. But where would that have left Uriah, and his innocent blood that was spilt? One truth remains….mercy cannot rob justice (Alma 42:25).

I always thought I understood the relationship between mercy and justice but now I understand it at a deeper level because I was taught through the medium I would understand. David’s story has always tugged at my heart.

Can you see the perfect nature of a God that we worship and trust through this story? On Judgment Day, the balance between justice and mercy will be so perfect that we will not be able to question it…..for our God knows all: He knows our hearts, our capabilities, our intents, our souls, our pains, everything that could induce mercy….but yet He obeys all the laws that He himself is governed by and ensures there will be no one left without justice.

This understanding of the Saviour’s perfect character came to me through the power of the Spirit. My intent is to bear witness that the Holy Ghost can teach us what we need to know and more importantly, he can broaden our vista of knowledge of God. And this is why it is important for us to know Him: “Three things are necessary in order for a person to exercise faith in God unto life and salvation: 1. The idea that He actually exists; 2. A correct idea of His character, perfections, and attributes; 3. An actual knowledge that the course of life which he is pursuing is according to His will.” – Joseph Smith, Lectures on Faith, Lecture Third.

 

ODE TO THE GOD WHO SEES MY SOUL:
You who know me well
Teach me all that I need
And send me Him
My soul to feed.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Spirit of God by LDS ART)

THE REALITIES OF MISSIONARY SERVICE

 

Every time I study the Book of Mormon, I come across evidences that Joseph Smith could never have written this book. I am amazed by its historical complexities, its prophecies, its textual correctness, its overwhelming spirit. I save these discoveries not to prove to me that the Book of Mormon is true, because I know that with every fibre of my being, but because it reminds me of so many truths: that Joseph Smith was a prophet, that this book is indeed the second witness of Christ and that we are so blessed to have additional scripture that enhances the Bible and makes clear so many points of Christ’s doctrine.  

Take special note in the last paragraph of how Elder F. Burton Howard of the Seventy became convinced of the validity of the Book of Mormon:

“I was reading again the twenty-sixth chapter of Alma and the story of Ammon’s mission, I read out loud, as I sometimes do, trying to put myself in the position of the characters in the book, imagining that I was saying or hearing the words, that I was there. Once more I went over the report, and, with a clarity which cannot be described and which would be difficult to comprehend by one who has not experienced it. The Spirit spoke to my soul, saying, Did you notice? Everything that happened to Ammon happened to you?

“It was a totally unexpected sentiment. It was startling in its scope; it was a thought that had never occurred to me before. I quickly reread the story. Yes, there were time when my heart had been depressed and I had thought about going home. I too had gone to a foreign land to teach the gospel to the Lamanites. I had gone forth among them, had suffered hardships, had slept on the floor, endured the cold, gone without eating. I too had traveled from house to house, knocking on doors for months at a time without being invited in, relying on the mercies of God.

“There had been other times when we had entered houses and talked to people. We had taught them on their streets and on their hills. We had even preached in other churches. I remembered the time I had been spit upon. I remembered the time when I, as a young district leader assigned by the mission president to open up a new town, had entered, with three other elders, the main square of a city that had never had missionaries before. We went into the park, sang a hymn and a crowd gathered.

“Then the lot fell on me, as district leader, to preach. I stood upon a stone bench and spoke to the people. I told the story of the restoration of the gospel, of the boy Joseph going in to the grove and the appearance of the Father and the Son to him. I remembered well a group of teenage boys, in the evening shadows, throwing rocks at us. I remembered the concern about being hit or injured by those who did not want to hear the message.

“I remembered spending time in jail while my legal right to be a missionary in a certain country was decided by the police authorities. I didn’t spend enough time in prison to compare myself to Ammon, but I still remember the feeling I had when the door was closed and I was far away from home, alone, with only the mercies of the Lord to rely on for deliverance. I remembered enduring these things with a hope that ‘we might be the means of saving some soul’ (Alma 26:30).

“And then one day as I read, the Spirit testified to me again, and the words remain with me even today: No one but a missionary could have written this story. Joseph Smith could never have known what it was like to be a missionary to the Lamanites, for no one he knew had ever done such a thing before” (“Ammon: Reflections on Faith and Testimony,” in Heroes From the Book of Mormon [1995], 124, 125)

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Ammon Before Lamoni, Artist Unknown)

TAUGHT FROM ON HIGH

 

I am amazed at how many voices there are in the world today due to technology. I guess I am one of them, for which I am profoundly grateful as expressing my love for the truth is my driving force.

 

What concerns me is that some of the voices out there are replacing the most important voice of all, the voice of the Spirit. Let me explain. I have friends who have given up reading the scriptures because podcasts by people who study them are so much easier to ‘listen’ to. This is a grave mistake, not only because you miss out on being tutored by heaven, which I highly recommend, but also because you are at the risk of being misinformed by people’s well intentioned interpretations of the truth.

 

For example, let me discredit one false theory that is circulating right now concerning the 10 Lost Tribes. For some reason, even some self-proclaimed Church ‘scriptorians’ have decided that it is too hard to believe the 10 Tribes of Israel are really lost simply because ‘we don’t know where they are’. They instead believe that these tribes are merely scattered around the world amongst other people. Many members I know have started to believe this.  Firstly, this is partly true because, not all of the 10 tribes were led away by the Lord into the land of the north (D&C 110:11). When Assyrians attacked the Northern Kingdom of Israel, many fled to the safety of the Southern Kingdom; some remained in the Northern Kingdom and intermarried with Assyrians and thus became the Samaritans; and some abandoned their journey north and were scattered throughout Europe and Asia. 

 

On April 3, 1836, Moses appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple and committed to them the keys of the gathering of Israel, specifically from ‘the four parts of the earth, AND the leading of the ten tribes from the land of the north” (D&C 110:11). Section 133 goes one step further and explains the manner in which they will come back (vs 26,27).  It says that their prophets will hear the Lord’s voice; they shall smite the rocks, and the ice shall flow down at their presence; and a ‘highway’ shall be cast up ‘in the midst of the great deep’. And what is this highway? If you look down in the footnotes, you will see a reference to Exodus 14:29 which talks about the parting of the Red Sea for the children of Israel to walk through on dry ground to escape the Egyptians. Clearly the ‘highway’ then means the Lord will perform the same miracle for the 10 Lost Tribes to come to America to receive their blessings at the hands of Ephraim. This undertaking will be so massive and so grand that Jeremiah promised that the God will no longer be called the Lord who led the children of Israel out of Egypt but the Lord who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north (Jeremiah 16:14-15). These scriptures are discussed at length in the Doctrine and Covenants student manual which I would highly recommend.

 

My point is this: make the scriptures your foundation of knowledge and then when you hear other people speak, you will know what is true. My most favourite section of D&C is section 76. It promises that faithful saints will be given to know the ‘wonders of eternity’ and that their understanding will ‘reach to heaven’ (D&C 76:6-10). This can only be accomplished by the power of the Holy Ghost.  All the general conference talks are backed by the scriptures. Ponder, pray, study and cherish the word of God. It is food for the soul and salve to the heart. Listen to the spirit and trust it.

 

Your truth pierces my soul

And binds me to Your loving heart;

Your teaching moments

Find my hungry mind

And feed me like a bird in flight

Searching for a morsel

That gladdens its hungry heart.

Your mysteries are laid at my feet

And, I come to you Father

Clutching the riches that are mine to keep.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: Outpouring of the Spirit by Danny Hahlbohm)